WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — A total of 1,354 migrants and refugees, including 190 children, drowned in the Mediterranean Sea between Libya and Italy in the previous three months, UNICEF stated in a press release.
“A record number of refugee and migrant deaths in the Mediterranean over the past three months, including an estimated 190 children, has prompted an urgent appeal from UNICEF to leaders of European Union member states meeting in Malta,” the release stated on Thursday.
On Wednesday, UNICEF and its partners rescued 754 refugees, which included 148 unaccompanied children, in the Central Mediterranean Sea route.
The United Nations on Thursday called on Libya to deviate from its policy to automatically detain refugees and develop open reception centers.
